Stepping up to the podium, fifteen winners in a field of 450 highly qualified competitors. They have tirelessly trained by spending hours and hours in their craft spaces--building their skills, improving their techniques, and testing their limits. They have wowed the judge with their stamping skills, their design ability, their execution, their risk-taking, and their creativity.
They are the champions in our Olympics of Stamping challenge, friends. Please offer them a round of well-deserved and hearty applause. A cheer or two would do nicely as well.
In the Birthday category, the bronze medal winner is:
Erica MesservyMoxie Fab Alert: I love this simply stamped big fat cupcake. For me, the wow-factor comes in the pairing of those colorful stripes and sprinkles with the neutrals in the cupcake and the background paper. Moxie fab!
...the silver medal winner is:
Silke LedlowMoxie Fab Alert: The balance in this card is divine. The brilliant color combination in the cake steals the show (as it should), but it's balanced perfectly by the white background, the black accents, and the way she's scored the left hand side of the background which helps to balance the ribbon on the right side. The black flower is perfectly placed in the "sweet spot" of the card making me want to gobble it up entirely. Delicious!
...and the gold medal winner is:
Krysten NgMoxie Fab Alert: Not only is this a g-o-r-g-e-o-u-s card, but it's technique-y as well. Krysten has used "stamp kissing" on the flowers which adds texture and all-around moxie fabulousness to an expertly executed card!
In the Love category, the bronze medal winner is:
Michelle MatheyMoxie Fab Alert: I love the way Michelle has stamped the monster background, alternating and staggering those cute little guys. I also love the way she's pulled out the main monster as the focal point because it accentuates the sentiment, "one of a kind."
...the silver medal winner is:
CarlyMoxie Fab Alert: The focal point in this card is unmistakable--a heart surrounded by cute typography in a color scheme that is fresh and fun. I also love the way Carly has embossed a dotted pattern on the bottom half of the card which helps ground the focal point, eliminating any chance that it might feel like it's "floating." AND she's echoed those dots by piercing the petals of the flowers giving the card wonderful continuity and flow!
...and the gold medal winner is:
Scrappy A (Alicia)Moxie Fab World: Talk about trendy! We've got a trendy image in this retro seamstress, a trendy technique in stamping on patterned paper, a trendy way to call attention to a focal point by placing a shape offset and behind, a trendy color combination, and a trendy accent in that puffy "love you" heart. Put that all together and what do you get? Moxie fab at its best!
In the Season's Greetings category, the bronze medal winner is:
Katie RenzMoxie Fab Alert: The hand-stamped background shines in this card! Katie has allowed it to speak completely for itself by treating the sentiment, ribbon, and the bottom border so simply. Yummy!
...the silver medal winner is:
TraceyMoxie Fab Alert: This beautiful card is entirely stamped. From the background to the focal point, Tracey has created movement, depth, balance, and flow with a skill and execution that I admire tremendously.
...and the gold medal winner is:
Kristin TierneyMoxie Fab Alert: The colors in this card leave me with my jaw on the floor. The soft shades of yellow, green, and blue with the white embossing and sparkle make me think that these flakes might have fallen through a pastel rainbow. Even Kristin admits that the color combination was out-of-the-box, but girl, you nailed it as far as I'm concerned!
In the Thank You category, the bronze medal winner is:
NinaBMoxie Fab Alert: Not only is this card beautifully stamped, but again, its balance is something rare and wonderful. The focal point is placed on the diagonal rather than on the square, which offsets the vertical background perfectly. The pearls at the bottom both ground the card and echo the pearls at the top of the focal point. And the butterfly and the bow offset one another in delicious harmony. Besides that? It's absolutely and unequivocally gorgeous!
The silver medal winner is:
KaraMoxie Fab Alert: Speaking of gorgeous, oh my. When I first opened this card up in my browser, my heart started beating much, much faster. The flowers are amazing, aren't they? The way they're colored, the way they're layered, they way they're turned up to give them extra texture. And again, balance. The focal point on the left is balanced by the sentiment, while the bow ties them both together.
...and the gold medal winner is:
Lala aka MissblissMoxie Fab Alert: It's punny! It's well-executed! It's sweet! It's fun! It's super stampy! It's quirky! It's moxie fab!
And last but certainly not least, in the Thinking of You category, the bronze medal winner is:
Mariana GrigsbyMoxie Fab Alert: This card has some serious wow-factor. First you see that punch of a color scheme. Then you see that beautiful damask focal point. And then? Then you see that she's pulled a heart out of said beautiful damask focal point. And then? Then you say, "Wow!"
Karen BakerMoxie Fab Alert: Speaking of "wow" factor, this card has it goin' on as well. "Wow" in the color scheme, "wow" in the technique she's used to reverse-silhouette those flowers, "wow" in the balance of the card (good things come in "three's"), "wow" in the font that perfectly matches the style of the card, and "wow" in that ribbon and those three little rhinestones that top it all off. I'm just sayin'. Wow.
Lea L.Moxie Fab Alert: Um. Yeah. Wow. Super awesome gradient stamping. Super awesome echoing of gradient color in the rhinestones at the bottom. Super awesome simple treatment of the sentiment allowing the rest of it to shine, shine, shine. Oh my wow, Lea! Oh my wow!
Congratulations again to these winners, certainly, but I'd also like to thank the other 435 of you who gave this challenge a go. I could have easily chosen ten winners in each category without hesitation. As I looked at each card, I was so impressed with your passion for stamping, the fun you were having, and the joy that this craft brings you. Thanks for sharing it all with me and the rest of the Moxie Fab World!
Now friends, the Olympics of Stamping may be over, but the Paper Crafts Stamping Royalty competition is just warming up. I would just love it if every single one of you sent in your stamped card(s) for this challenge to this contest. Entries must be postmarked by March 24. Not only do you have a chance to be published in our November/December 2010 issue, but you also have a chance to win a prize package worth over $250. What have you got to lose? If you were brave enough to post your card for this challenge to your blog, certainly you're brave enough to let us humble editors take a look at your work. I know, right?
Also, I can't stress enough how much we'd love to see your work come through our submissions process. Whether you are a stamper or a non-stamper, we'd love to see your creative approaches to our calls. You can always see what we're looking for by bookmarking this link to our website. In fact, we've got a super fun call out right now. Again I say:
What have you got to lose?
OK. I'm stepping off my soap box now. Podiums. Soap boxes. We're certainly feeling elevated here in the Moxie Fab World today now aren't we?
Winners, you must send me your addresses in an email at cedvalson@papercraftsmag.com with "Olympics of Stamping Challenge Winner" in the subject line in order to claim your prize. I can't wait to hear from all fifteen of you!
Friends, leave these ladies some love by midnight MST on Sunday, March 14 and I'll rustle up a yummy prize for one random winner!
Huggin' all y'all in the Kiss & Cry section,
~Cath
PS Don't despair, the Olympics of Stamping Challenge may be officially wrapped up, but there's still the Diggin' on Doilies & Lace Challenge AND the Paper Crafts Babies & Brides Gallery Challenge. Click on the links to challenge yourself even more!
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